Book Review: Poison by Bridget Zinn

Sixteen-year-old Kyra, a highly-skilled potions master, is the only one who knows her kingdom is on the verge of destruction—which means she’s the only one who can save it. Faced with no other choice, Kyra decides to do what she does best: poison the kingdom’s future ruler, who also happens to be her former best friend.

But, for the first time ever, her poisoned dart . . . misses.

Now a fugitive instead of a hero, Kyra is caught in a game of hide-and-seek with the king’s army and her potioner ex-boyfriend, Hal. At least she’s not alone. She’s armed with her vital potions, a too-cute pig, and Fred, the charming adventurer she can’t stop thinking about. Kyra is determined to get herself a second chance (at murder), but will she be able to find and defeat the princess before Hal and the army find her?

Kyra is not your typical murderer, and she’s certainly no damsel-in-distress—she’s the lovable and quick-witted hero of this romantic novel that has all the right ingredients to make teen girls swoon.

Poison by Bridget Zinn is a truly enjoyable little fantasy story. It has some great characters (and one AMAZING one) and was easily digestible all around. When push came to shove though, this book never really did anything to stand out and wow me. That’s not to say that it’s bad… but I did wish for more. It had way more potential. But I don’t regret reading it, because what was written was definitely good.

So, Poison basically tells the story of one extraordinary pig who gets swept up in an adventure when this girl, Kyra something-or-other, recruits her for a dangerous mission. Along the way she falls in love and gets in all kinds of hijinks due to her cuteness.

…

I’m joking. Breathe easy, don’t worry, the synopsis didn’t lie to you. But for me, Poison‘s major selling point is, in fact, a pig. Kyra, Master Potioner and assassin on a mission, gets a pet pig, Rosie, on her travels due to its hunting prowess. The pig, a tiny little creature, is the cutest thing ever and had me CONSTANTLY awww-ing at this book. I was freaking obsessed with the thing. It was the reason I was reading. It was totally all too cute. I just. I can’t.

I normally don’t even care for animals in books – much less pigs. But this pig slowly but surely ruined my life with its cuteness. I can’t even explain it at all. But my experience of this book was bound to the pig. Pig gets attacked? I SCREAMED AND TEARED UP. Pig reunited with Kyra? TEARS OF JOY TOO CUTE I CAN’T. This is not logical at all. This pig has seized my heart. That’s it.

I’M STILL SANE I SWEAR.

*cough* okay, but admittedly…. there is more to this book than just the pig. In terms of characters, I really liked Kyra, Fred, and Ariana. Kyra, the main character, is intelligent and brave, reminiscent of Celaena of Throne of Glass. Fred is hilarious, charming, and all around wonderful, just like a love interest should be. The banter between the two of them started off as TRULY AWESOME but that sadly petered off towards the end. I was really, really rooting for them in the beginning, but when Kyra more or less comes to terms with her feelings for him, it became a bit too sappy (with a side of jealousy). Now, Kyra’s relationship with the pig, Rosie, was the absolute best thing in the world.

The story itself was really intriguing at the beginning. It was exciting, it moved quickly, it had this mystery element I was really digging. Mostly, it reminded me of Throne of Glass which I just read and loved. So I was enjoying it. But the end made it fall a bit flat. Each conflict was resolved in the simplest way possible, akin to someone in a series of duels winning each one with a one-hit kill. Before the end I thought this would definitely be between 4 and 5 stars, but at the end, in retrospect, despite my love for Rosie, the book just wasn’t that amazing.

Summing Up:

Thank you, Bridget Zinn, for giving me my #LitPet. I absolutely love Rosie, and her cuteness will stay with me. The rest of the book was good as well, despite my reservations about the ending. It makes me sad that you were taken from this world before you got to wow us with more of your writing, because I can tell you were extremely talented and had a lot more to offer us. Still, I’m glad I got the chance to read this book. It really lifted my spirits and made me smile.

Yup, I think the pig was my favorite part too – They are going to have to make a "team Rosie" badge for this one, haha. I also like the overall concept for the story and am hoping she comes out with the second book eventually. Nice review. 🙂

Seriously I don't understand what's the fuss with the pig xD *hides away* I haven't read Poison but it has been on my TBR for ages. Now I might order it online just to read it and yeah, read about the pig xD Love your reviews, Deb. They all make me laugh.
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The pig gifs are so cute! Anyway, I'm glad you enjoyed this even though it lacked that "wow" moment. I recently got it from the library so it's nice to hear it's a good read. Great review!

[…] adorable, and insightful. It will be reread. (ALSO: the naked hardcover is amazingly beautiful.) Poison by Bridget Zinn: I read this ages ago on my e-reader, and I adored it. Ever since I’ve been […]